Description:  Early in the doctoral program, students are informed of the importance of ethical research practices.  Aside from the obvious task of avoiding any harm to the participants a researcher uses in his or her study, it was strongly suggested during the GREV 550, Instrument Design course that we complete the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI ) Training for researchers.  This institution creates education materials, courses and modules that assist is training individuals in the  research community.  The education materials on Human Subject Research includes a basic course for those involved in "no more than minimal risk" human subject research with 32 separate modules. The material included ethical principles, regulations, privacy and confidentiality, IRB rules and regulations, conflicts of interest and other research protocol necessary for acceptable research practice. After completing and passing this training, the opportunity to engage in research presented itself.  Following all protocol for Human Subject Research, I wrote a proposal to the Institutional Review Board of two universities in order to collect and analyze data from students in a pre-service teacher education program.  The study, "Supporting Pre Service Teachers' Technology Integration Through Backward Design, TPACK Learning Activity Types, and Metacognition: BAM!" was approved. 

Reflection:  Reflection: Performing this type of research was a foreign idea to me prior to entering this doctoral program. In fact, I believe many students pursue their doctoral degree in order to engage in high levels of research, testing hypotheses formed in fields they have experience in.  My journey though was entirely different. My passions have always been teaching and learning, yet this program is exactly where I am called to be.  Professors have been extremely patient with me, helping me to discover research opportunities along the way, encouraging me to believe in myself and believe in the value of what I might be able to add to the field. Writing proposals for different conferences, whether accepted or denied, has taught me about the process of research as well as refining my writing.  The program has helped me to take risks, try new ideas, and practice accepted research procedures.  I do not think I ever would have imagined that I would be presenting at conferences, networking with experts in the field and even writing a chapter for a professional handbook. All of this adds to my passion for teaching, learning and leading, by conducting appropriate research and sharing the new knowledge gained.  There is much more to learn and I am encouraged to continue as I thank God for this supportive faculty and the generosity of their sharing of knowledge.